Folates

Roy L Kisliuk, Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston, Massachusetts, USA

Published online: April 2006

DOI: 10.1038/npg.els.0003924

Folic acid is a vitamin required for normal growth. It was discovered as a stable factor in extracts of yeast and of liver, which cured anaemia in pregnant women. The preponderant forms of folic acid in tissues are tetrahydrofolate polyglutamates with single carbon adducts corresponding to methanol, formaldehyde and formate. Folates are essential for the enzymatic oxidation, reduction and transfer of single carbon units involved in the metabolism of thymidylate, purine nucleotides, methionine, serine, histidine and choline.

Keywords: Folates; vitamins; metabolism

Scheme I. Folic acid
Scheme II. 5,6,7,8-Tetrahydrofolic acid R=H
Scheme III. 5,6,7,8-Tetrahydrofolic acid poly--glutamate
Figure 1. The thymidylate cycle.
Figure 2. (a) Formation of 5-methyltetrahydrofolate catalysed by methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase. (b) Formation of methionine catalysed by cobalamin-dependent methionine synthase.
Figure 3. Folate-dependent reactions in purine nucleotide biosynthesis.
Figure 4. Folate antagonists.
Figure 5. 5,6,7,8-Tetrahydrobiopterin.
Figure 6. 5,6,7,8-Tetrahydromethanopterin.
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 References
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 Further Reading
    book Blakley RL (1969) The Biochemistry of Folates and Related Pteridines, pp.1–569. New York: Wiley Interscience.
    book Blakley RL and Benkovic SJ (eds) (1984) "Folates and Pterins", vol. 1, Chemistry and Biochemistry of Folates, pp. 1–628. New York: Wiley Interscience.
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    book Kisliuk RL (1999) "The biochemistry of folates". In: Jackman A (ed.) Antifolate Drugs in Cancer Therapy, pp. 13–36. Totowa, NJ: Humana Press.
    book Stokstad ELR (1954) "Pteroylglutamic acid". In: Sebrell WH Jr and Harris RS (eds) The Vitamins, vol. III, pp. 89–217. New York: Academic Press.

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Other Biomolecules: Structure, Function, Metabolism | Enzymes: Structure and Action Mechanism
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Article Title: Folates
 
How to Cite close
Kisliuk, Roy L(Apr 2006) Folates. In: eLS. John Wiley & Sons Ltd, Chichester. http://www.els.net [doi: 10.1038/npg.els.0003924]